It seems like many revolutions follow this path - they have a great revolutionary spirit, but have trouble putting it away and accepting differences once they've won the war, as happened in the French revolution and ensuing Reign of Terror.
Still, given the international aid that the Libyan rebel movement received, I was hoping for something a little better than this. But then again - who're we to talk. The US has plenty of its own torture on record.
4 comments:
I believe that it's perfectly natural that they will result in using torture. Putting the question of right or wrong aside, they still have information they need to get out of prisoners. Also, it is very easy to not care about those that have inflicted harm on them. Finally, as Brian mentioned, the US has a record of torture, so in a way, they're emulating our method of doing things.
I believe that these actions can only foreshadow the future of Libya. With their old government recently thrown out, the people are starting from scratch. With torture already occurring, it isn't the best signs that everything will fold out peacefully. Yes, I agree that the people of Libya have been wronged by their previous government, but that doesn't give them the right to torture Ghadaffi's followers. His followers have probably committed many horrible crimes and need to be put to justice. However, this needs to be done in a humane and just way. The people of Libya should not stump the level of Ghadaffi, but rise above him and do better.
It's saddening to watch this cycle of violence circling the globe. Regardless of the USA's use of torture, the Libyans' actions are unjustifiable. In response to Zhili, I would point out that the rebels have already won the war. While some might defend torture under extreme circumstances, such as extracting information about a future bombing from terrorists, there is no such danger to Libya now that Gadaffi has lost power. In addition, the article brings up "extrajudicial executions [and] rape," which seem to serve no other purpose than vengeance. The real problem, I think, is how the head of the military council not only denies the use of violence, but claims human rights groups have a "hidden agenda." To attack humanitarian groups for having an ulterior motive seems extraordinarily tactless and disgusting.
What particularly stood out to me was that "The people running the Misrata detention centre [said]they were aware of inmates being taken away to be tortured, but were powerless to stop it.Many detention centres are controlled by militias unaccountable to the government." It's really disturbing to me that the new government not only is making no effort to stop the torture, but also doesn't believe they can stop it. Like Mitchell said, not being able to end this type of gratuitous violence is not a good sign for a new government.
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